Into the Void
The trees
Shed their autumn colours
A gleam of purple
Tinged with gold
Yellow
Twisting, pirouettes
And ruby maple leaves
All falling
Leaf by leaf
From the emptiness
Of heaven
A silent dance
A downward passage
To alight
In crowded clusters
In the damp
Scented earth
Against an ancient wall
Curling
As they lean
Towards the sun
Shivering
At the touch of the breeze
And scattering
At sudden wintery gusts
Once without a voice
Now raucous
In decline
Crackling whispers
As they shift
And separate
In their demise
Until a single leaf
Alone is left
Clinging fast
A solitary soul
Bereft
Against a clear blue sky
Balancing
The joy of light
Against the loneliness
The choice is clear
So it leaves behind
All that it knows
And gliding out
Into the void
Falls gracefully
And without a hint of fear
© Ann Bagnall 2015.
